On Monday, the Delhi High Court issued an interim order directing Baba Ramdev, Acharya Bal Krishan, and others to remove statements and social media posts that accuse allopathic medicine and doctors of causing deaths during the COVID-19 pandemic. The court’s order is aimed at addressing concerns that promoting and advertising Patanjali’s Coronil as a COVID-19 treatment could mislead the public and potentially harm the credibility of Ayurveda.
The court observed that branding Coronil as a cure for COVID-19 might amount to mislabeling, which is prohibited under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940. The court has asked the relevant authorities to look into this issue but refrained from making further comments on the matter.
Justice Anup Jairam Bhambhani instructed the defendants to remove their social media posts promoting Coronil as the sole cure for COVID-19 within three days. If they do not comply, social media platforms will be required to remove the content.
This order came in response to a lawsuit filed by various doctors’ associations against Ramdev. These associations challenged Ramdev’s claim that Coronil is a cure for COVID-19, arguing that it is only licensed as an “immuno-booster.” The plaintiffs have criticized the lack of scientific evidence supporting Ramdev’s claims and contended that such statements are misleading.
The senior counsel for the plaintiffs had previously sought an injunction to prevent further misleading claims about Coronil. They argued that the product’s official license only supports its use as an immunity booster, not a cure.
Ramdev’s senior lawyer assured the court that Ramdev would comply with an undertaking given to the Supreme Court regarding advertisements for Patanjali products and expressed willingness to provide a similar undertaking in the Delhi High Court. The lawyer pointed out that the previous Supreme Court undertaking was related to avoiding casual statements that did not meet legal standards.
Justice Bhambhani acknowledged the specific nature of the misleading claims in this case and reserved his decision. In 2021, several doctors’ associations, including those from AIIMS and other prominent institutions, had filed a lawsuit alleging that Ramdev’s statements undermined public trust in allopathic medicine and COVID-19 vaccines. They claimed that Ramdev was promoting misinformation to boost sales of Coronil and other Patanjali products.